The Empty Cradle
by crescentgaia
Summary: She was only gone for a moment, but a moment was all it took to change everything. A/N: Used to be called the Empty Crib. It was changed when one of my beta-ers showed that cradle worked better. Chapter 2 will be up soon.


**Title:** The Empty Cradle  
**Author:** Cracklizard  
**Rating:** PGish  
**Word Count:** 889  
**Summary:** She was only gone for a moment but that moment was all it took to change everything.  
**Warnings:** None.  
**Notes:** I don't own these characters, JKR does. This is AU, considering the fact that Bellatrix never had children.

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She never thought that she would be holding a baby in her arms, attached to her breast as she was drained of the milk in her breast. A daughter of her own creation and the ones she loved. Of course, she would have preferred a son but a daughter was good enough for her. The labor was hard and long, just to bring such a tiny one into the world. She couldn't stop thinking on how tiny the little one is until she felt someone watching her. She lifted her head and smiled at Rodolphus. "She's hungry."

"I can see that," Rodolphus said with a soft smile. "Most babies are hungry as they need to grow."

"I know," she said quietly. "Have you thought on the name I suggested?"

"Diantha? I think it's a bit strange but then again, I shouldn't be surprised," he replied. "But we could call her Di for short when it calls for it." He moved over to softly kiss his wife on the forehead. "Narcissa is here to pay a visit, when Diantha is done eating."

"Oh good," she said as she looked down at the little one, watching her decide that she had enough. "And it was very good timing too, little Di." She picked up her baby to gently burp and hug her. After that, she gently handed Diantha over to the nanny who would be helping for a few days. The nanny was a "Death Eater", being controlled through the Imperius curse that was going on long enough for her to be trusted not to break it. She buttoned up her shirt and motioned for Rodolphus to come with her.

Rodolphus followed but looked back towards the room with the nanny. "Bella, do you think she'll be alright with that woman?"

"Yes," Bella replied, giving Rodolphus a look. "The curse hasn't broken and there's no reason for the curse to do so. Besides, weren't you raised more by the nanny than your own parents? Its only right, especially when we are both busy changing the world for the better. She will never have to fight with the mudbloods in order to make sure that she has proper education or worry about what she needs."

Rodolphus relaxed a bit, especially with getting a look from Bella. "You are right love. I am just a bit worried."

"There is no reason for you to be," Bella says. "She is our child," she said before leaning and whispering into his ear "even though she is a small bit different in blood. She will always be your daughter. Your daughter with me." It did not help that Rodolphus was impotent but there were ways to get around that – like sleeping with the Dark Lord and getting pregnant, but telling everyone else that the daughter was her husband's. There was a small bit of doubt in Bella's mind that her daughter looked more like her husband than her Lord. But if she thought that, then the world would think the same. She kissed his cheek before leaving his side and going over to her sister. "Cissy," she said and hugged her.

"Hello Bella," Narcissa said, not wrinkling her nose at her nickname. She never did like it, but would not tell her sister that. "I came to see my little niece, if you do not mind. Mother and father would come, if they were not busy."

"I do not mind their being busy," Bella said with a smile. She knew that her parents were doing their own in the battles that would come. "We did decide on a name. Diantha."

"Diantha Lestrange," Narcissa said, thinking on it. "Nice ring to it. And it keeps in the family tradition of having different names for the children."

Bella chuckled as she turned to lead Cissy down to where Diantha was. "That's what I thought as well. And Rodolphus gets the chance to name the next child, when there is one."

"When?" Narcissa asked, amused. "I never thought you would actually think about having children now, Bella."

"There are these things called nannies, Cissy dear," Bella said as she shook her head at her sister. She opened the door about to say something else as she saw an empty room. She looked around, moving to go into the bathroom to see if the nanny had took Diantha in there to wash her. She quickly came back into the main part of the room, looking down into the cradle to see that DIantha wasn't there either.

"Bellatrix?" Narcissa asked as she placed a hand on her sister's shoulder. She didn't get any response, so she quickly went to the door and yelled for Rodolphus.

"I was only gone for a moment," Bellatrix whispered as she looked at the empty cradle, sinking down to her knees. "only a moment," she said, barely audible as she started to cry. It was only the second time in her life that she had cried and it was something that chilled Narcissa to the bone. When Rodolphus came, he started getting everyone there to search for the nanny and child, who were long gone by that time. It took several hours before Bellatrix would move from the empty cradle, wondering if her child was alive or dead and if she would ever see her again.


End file.
